“…Mm.” He answered reluctantly.
“Why didn’t I see him today?”
“He went to work,” Lan Xingchen said. “He won’t be back for three months.”
“I heard from your aunt that he’s an actor too?”
“Mm.”
Wen Yuan nodded. “Then perhaps Xiao Rong can help look after him.”
“No need,” Lan Xingchen replied instinctively.
He refused so quickly and without thought that Wen Yuan’s gaze shifted back to him.
Lan Xingchen, a little embarrassed, added, “My roommate is very independent. He prefers to handle things on his own and doesn’t like help.”
Wen Yuan looked at him quietly. After a long pause, he said, “Alright then.”
Lan Xingchen exhaled in relief and lowered his head to eat.
Wen Yuan watched his bowed head in silence.
Before Wen Yuan married Zhou Man, he had taken Lan Xingchen to meet Zhou Man, Ning Yuan, and Ning Rong several times.
The first time they met, Wen Yuan introduced them: “These are your Aunt Zhou’s younger siblings.”
Zhou Man was nine years younger than Wen Yuan, beautiful and youthful, and technically Lan Xingchen could have called her “sister.” But since she would one day be Wen Yuan’s wife, he didn’t want to confuse the family hierarchy, so he introduced her as “Aunt.”
He looked at Lan Xingchen and said, “You can also call them Uncle and Aunt if you like.”
Lan Xingchen was a little surprised. Growing up, he had always called Wen Yuan “Uncle.” Suddenly being asked to call others “Uncle” felt strange and awkward—especially since he and Ning Yuan were about the same age.
Ning Yuan understood this as well.
He knew that when Wen Yuan asked Lan Xingchen to call him “Uncle,” it was because Wen Yuan treated Lan Xingchen like his own child. So naturally, Ning Yuan accepted that his future wife’s younger brother should also be called “Uncle.”
There was no problem with this in principle, but Lan Xingchen wasn’t used to it. Ning Yuan noticed that too.
So Ning Yuan spoke up: “It’s fine. I’m about the same age as Xiao Rong and Lan Xingchen. If he wants, he can call me brother and call Xiao Rong sister.”
For Lan Xingchen, that was a far more comfortable arrangement.
So he politely called out “brother” and “sister.”
At that time, everything was normal.
Afterward, Wen Yuan asked Lan Xingchen’s opinion about his marriage—whether he could accept it, whether he was willing to live together after the wedding. Once he confirmed that Lan Xingchen was okay with it, Wen Yuan married Zhou Man.
It could be said that if Lan Xingchen had shown even the slightest reluctance, Wen Yuan would not have gone through with the marriage.
Having raised Lan Xingchen since his sister and brother-in-law left, Wen Yuan had even ended his relationship with his first love for the sake of Lan Xingchen.
To Wen Yuan, Lan Xingchen was not his son by blood, but in every other way, he already was his son.
Even after marrying Zhou Man, Wen Yuan did not make Lan Xingchen move out.
But later, Wen Yuan noticed something strange: Lan Xingchen seemed to dislike Ning Yuan and Ning Rong.
At first, he thought he was imagining it.
But after observing for a while, he realized it was true.
Lan Xingchen would avoid the days Ning Yuan and Ning Rong visited, going out to play or staying at school instead.
He would deliberately not bring them up in conversation, and if Wen Yuan mentioned them, he would quickly change the topic.
Most noticeably, he stopped calling them “brother” and “sister”—even though previously, due to limited meetings, he rarely used those terms. After the marriage, he almost never did.
Sensing his distance, Ning Yuan and Ning Rong gradually reduced their visits.
At first, Wen Yuan understood—they were young, one just graduated from college, the other still in school, and in his eyes, they were still children. Since they had always relied on Zhou Man, a sister figure, he empathized and thought perhaps Zhou Man wouldn’t want to separate from them either. So he suggested that with his large villa, they could all live together.
Zhou Man, while happy, worried that Lan Xingchen, used to life with just Wen Yuan, might not adjust well to suddenly having five people living together. Moreover, who brings siblings to live after marriage? She politely declined.
Wen Yuan, who loved her, occasionally invited Ning Yuan and Ning Rong over. If it got late, they would stay the night.
They agreed, and Wen Yuan even prepared rooms for them.
But later, Lan Xingchen began to avoid them, and Ning Yuan and Ning Rong gradually stopped coming.
When Wen Yuan couldn’t understand why, he asked Lan Xingchen directly, gently and reasonably, if he disliked Ning Yuan and Ning Rong.
Lan Xingchen, as if unwilling to discuss it, replied, “No.”
“Really? You don’t? Don’t imagine things, Uncle.”
“Then why don’t you call them brother and sister? Why don’t you interact with them?”
Lan Xingchen paused, then asked, “Do I have to?”
“We’re all adults now. We didn’t know each other before, now we do. Isn’t it enough to just acknowledge each other’s existence? Must we interact closely?”
Wen Yuan considered this and remembered reading that many young people nowadays dislike socializing, visiting relatives, or unnecessary interactions.
He figured Lan Xingchen might be the same.
Lan Xingchen had his own friends and family; Wen Yuan couldn’t force him to accept others just because of his marriage to Zhou Man.
In short, Lan Xingchen and Ning Yuan and Ning Rong only met because of Wen Yuan and Zhou Man’s marriage. They had little emotional connection, likely no shared topics, and being similar in age didn’t mean they would get along. What one liked, the other might dislike—and vice versa. That’s why there was so little to say.
Yet Wen Yuan always felt there was more to it.
Lan Xingchen insisted that he simply had nothing to say and didn’t want socializing. Wen Yuan couldn’t force him, so he let it go.
And what Wen Yuan saw, Zhou Man saw too.
She was confused, even briefly worrying that Lan Xingchen disliked her, not wanting her to marry Wen Yuan—which might have caused the current situation.
But Wen Yuan dismissed that thought.
He had asked Lan Xingchen about it before. Lan Xingchen’s reaction then was entirely different from how he reacted to Ning Yuan and Ning Rong.
He seemed worried Wen Yuan might divorce Zhou Man on his account, quickly saying, “No, no, really no.”
“Uncle, don’t overthink it.”
“I don’t dislike Aunt Zhou. It’s just… sometimes I don’t know how to face her. But I really don’t dislike her, I swear. You must, must not do anything you shouldn’t because of this.”
Wen Yuan chuckled. “Anything I shouldn’t?”
Lan Xingchen looked at him with a look that said, you know what I mean.
Wen Yuan couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time. Looking at this child in front of him, he pondered that phrase, sometimes I don’t know how to face her. After thinking it over, he concluded that it came from years of living in a house with only him and Lan Xingchen. Lan Xingchen had long been accustomed to life with only one uncle. Suddenly having an aunt in the mix—he just couldn’t adjust.
So, when Lan Xingchen insisted on moving out after graduating from university, Wen Yuan tried every way to persuade him but failed, and finally reluctantly agreed.
He helped Lan Xingchen buy a house, gave him a car, and even arranged a housekeeper to cook and clean, worried that he wouldn’t adapt to living alone.
Zhou Man felt helpless. She asked disappointedly if she had done something wrong.
Wen Yuan reassured her, “Of course not.”
“Then why does he want to move out?”
“Because he’s still a child,” Wen Yuan said gently. No matter how old Lan Xingchen got, to Wen Yuan, he would always be a child.
“A child can rationally accept a parent’s marriage, accept the family growing from two to three. But emotionally, he’s accustomed to life with just us. So there’s inevitably a period of awkwardness—confusion, discomfort, not knowing what to do.”
“Even though I’m not his father, I’ve lived with him since he was little. He sees me, and naturally he treats me like a single parent would. He wants his parent to be happy, so he wants me to marry someone I like. But he’s not close enough to you to express his thoughts and feelings properly.”
“He doesn’t know how to gauge interacting with you, and he’s afraid you’ll misunderstand him as disliking you, which could affect our relationship. So he chose to move out.”
“When this awkward period passes and he understands better, he will naturally come back home.”
Zhou Man thought this made sense and felt somewhat reassured.
But from the time Lan Xingchen moved out until now, nearly three years had passed, and it seemed he still hadn’t moved past that awkward period, still subconsciously avoiding close connections with Ning Yuan and Ning Rong.
“Are you really not fond of Ning Yuan and Ning Rong?” Wen Yuan asked again.
Lan Xingchen hadn’t expected him to ask the question a second time.
Of course, he didn’t like Ning Yuan and Ning Rong—they didn’t like him first, so why should he like them? He wasn’t obligated to be close with them.
“No,” Lan Xingchen said, feigning casualness.
Though he didn’t like Ning Yuan and Ning Rong, it was only because they didn’t like him first. Zhou Man didn’t dislike him, so naturally, he had no objections toward her.
Moreover, his uncle liked Zhou Man, and he didn’t want to affect their relationship.
If he openly said he didn’t like them, what would happen? Given the closeness between Ning Yuan, Ning Rong, and Zhou Man, it could create friction between him and Zhou Man.
Lan Xingchen didn’t want that. If he had wanted to, he would have said so from the beginning.
He simply didn’t want his uncle, after all these years finally finding someone he liked, to lose her because of him.
He remembered clearly—back when he was very young, Wen Yuan had a girlfriend.
They were at the stage of considering marriage, but because of his parents’ accident, Wen Yuan took him in. Shortly afterward, Wen Yuan and his girlfriend broke up.
Wen Yuan never told him; life continued as usual—eating together, checking homework, going out to play.
Once, at a family gathering, he overheard relatives saying that Wen Yuan had broken up and probably wouldn’t marry soon. He realized then that his presence had caused his uncle to give up his first love, a girl Wen Yuan had been with for three years.
Listening to this, Lan Xingchen felt his heart drop like a lead stone.
He vaguely understood—it was because of him that his uncle lost someone he loved.
He couldn’t accept it. Later, at another gathering, he found Li Li, Wen Yuan’s ex, who he had met at his grandparents’ house.
At the time, Wen Yuan had brought her over to dinner, and while she played with him, he whispered, “Isn’t she pretty? She’ll be your future aunt.”
Lan Xingchen enthusiastically replied, “Pretty, so pretty, amazing!”
He remembered her gentle, kind voice.
He went over and quietly said, “Sister.”
Li Li looked down, saw him, and smiled.
“You’re here too,” she said, patting his head. “Do you want something to eat? I can get it for you.”
Lan Xingchen shook his head. “Sister, I want to talk to you.”
“Sure,” Li Li smiled and led him to a small sofa aside.
She handed him a drink she hadn’t yet touched and asked, “What do you want to say?”
Lan Xingchen’s voice was low. “Did you break up with my uncle?”
“Yes,” she replied.
“Was it because of me?” he asked, his clear, innocent eyes filled with anxious worry.
Li Li paused, shook her head, and said, “No. To be precise… it was because of me.”
Lan Xingchen didn’t understand.
Li Li sighed. “Xingchen, the adult world is complicated. Our breakup was the result of careful thought—it has nothing to do with you. Don’t overthink it.”
Lan Xingchen grew even more puzzled.
He frowned and asked her, “If I don’t live with my uncle and instead live with my grandparents, can you still marry him?”
Li Li shook her head.
“Then what if I go live with Uncle Xu and the others?”
“Xingchen,” Li Li said patiently, “it doesn’t matter who you live with. You are his nephew. No matter who you live with, he will unconditionally love you, care for you, and always think of you first.”
Li Li loved Wen Yuan—there was no doubt about that—but at the same time, she knew clearly that if she married Wen Yuan and had a child of their own, she would naturally love her own child and want them to have everything.
But Wen Yuan clearly felt differently.
To him, Lan Xingchen was already his child, and because he was the only blood relative left from his sister, Wen Yuan couldn’t help but favor him.
This wasn’t fair to her future child.
Her child could have grown up without competition—born to receive all the love and wealth from his father—but now, he would have to compete with Lan Xingchen.
And in some ways, Lan Xingchen might even receive more.
Li Li had asked Wen Yuan, “If in the future, both Xingchen and our child are interested in Anglai, and their abilities and conditions are equal, who would you give him to?”
Wen Yuan had been silent for a long time, and finally said, “Xingchen.”
He would always prioritize Lan Xingchen’s interests.
“We should break up,” Li Li said calmly.
He had no right to ask a mother to love another’s child more than her own, yet he knew he could not ignore Lan Xingchen’s needs.
If even he didn’t look out for Lan Xingchen, who in this world would?
Every child has parents who take care of everything for them. Lan Xingchen, however, had only him.
Li Li’s tears fell silently. This outcome was what she had expected, yet it still hurt deeply.
She loved Wen Yuan and truly wanted to marry him, but she understood her own temperament. Even if they married, they would inevitably face repeated conflicts, eventually leading to divorce.
She nodded and said, “Alright.”
She stood up and embraced the man she had loved for so long one last time.
Wen Yuan stroked her head and coaxed, “Don’t cry. You look so beautiful today, crying won’t do you justice.”
He sent her off in a car and watched her drive away.
He thought perhaps one day, in the quiet of night, he would deeply miss Li Li, the woman he had loved for three years, but he would never regret today’s decision.
He walked slowly along the street as the sun set.
That evening, Wen Yuan made a decision: he would not fall in love again until Lan Xingchen grew up.
Perhaps, in this lifetime, he would never fall in love again.
It didn’t matter—he had loved once, experienced the beauty of romance, and that was enough.
He walked quietly, bathed in the glow of the setting sun.
By the time the night sky was filled with stars, Wen Yuan returned home.
He opened the door and saw Lan Xingchen sitting on the sofa, watching cartoons, waiting for him.
“Uncle!” Lan Xingchen exclaimed, jumping off the sofa and running happily toward him.
Wen Yuan scooped him up and rubbed his forehead.
“Why are you home so late?” Lan Xingchen asked.
“Had some things to discuss with friends. Won’t happen next time,” he said, as if nothing had happened.
Li Li, looking back, couldn’t help but be moved thinking of Wen Yuan that day.
She rarely met someone she could love so deeply, yet fate had denied them.
“I’ll take you home,” Li Li said, lightly tapping the young Lan Xingchen’s forehead. “You’re still small and don’t understand many things. When you grow up, you’ll understand.”
At that time, Lan Xingchen truly didn’t understand—why they had to part.
He lived with his uncle, yet they had to part.
He moved in with his grandparents, yet they still had to part.
Even if he lived at the Xu family’s house, they would still part.
Later, as he grew older, he finally understood: the crucial point was never where he lived. The key was him—his uncle’s feelings for him.
So, in a way, because of him, Wen Yuan had lost love, lost the person he cared for.
And thus, when Zhou Man appeared, and when Lan Xingchen learned of Wen Yuan’s affection for her, he carefully and diligently worked to protect this rare love that belonged to Wen Yuan.
He feared that his uncle would lose another love because of him.
He had already delayed his uncle’s happiness for too long. Now, he deserved his own happiness, and no one—including himself—could take that away.